Tag Archives: Ben Nevis

Optimists Arête on Ben Nevis

Posted on November 13, 2017 by Simon Richardson

Taking advantage of the good early season snowfall in the West last weekend, Steve Holmes and Ken Applegate made the long approach up Tower Gully on November 11 to the unformed Upper Tower Cascades on the East Flank of Tower … Continue reading →

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Thin Ice Special

Posted on April 1, 2017 by Simon Richardson

Conditions change quickly in late March. The day after our ascent of Failure Is Not An Option on the North Wall of Carn Dearg, the temperature was warmer and Iain Small and I had to look higher up on Ben … Continue reading →

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Failure Is Not An Option

Posted on March 31, 2017 by Simon Richardson

A curious result of this year’s difficult conditions was the temporary formation of ice at low levels on Ben Nevis during the third week in March. The icefalls below Carn Dearg became remarkably icy. These don’t normally merit much notice, … Continue reading →

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Ben Nevis Update

Posted on March 30, 2017 by Simon Richardson

It’s been a difficult season, but as March progressed, good winter climbing was found on Ben Nevis. The problem this winter has been the lack of any base. Any snowfalls have quickly disappeared due to rapid thaws, but the Ben’s … Continue reading →

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Cloudjumper

Posted on March 14, 2017 by Simon Richardson

“Dave MacLeod and I headed up the Ben last Sunday (March 5),” Helen Rennard writes. “We had been thinking of climbing something up in Coire na Ciste and Dave had kindly offered to belay me on something (I tend to … Continue reading →

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The Shape Of Things To Come

Posted on March 10, 2017 by Simon Richardson

I had the privilege of accompanying Iain Small on a journey up the North Wall of Carn Dearg on March 2. This excellent but unfrequented cliff is situated left of The Shroud on Ben Nevis. Steep and rocky and lying … Continue reading →

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Slovenian Exchange

Posted on March 9, 2017 by Simon Richardson

From February 12 to 19, eight Slovenian climbers visited Scotland and teamed up with British climbers to sample the ‘delights’ of Scottish winter. They caught the end of the February cold snap and enjoyed excellent mixed climbing for the first … Continue reading →

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High and Steep on The Ben

Posted on February 7, 2017 by Simon Richardson

Friday night’s snowfall fell with little wind and left a thick coat of snow on Ben Nevis. It snowed continuously on Saturday so the mountain now looks very wintry. On the classic routes, heavy snow over bare terrain made for … Continue reading →

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Snow At Last!

Posted on January 31, 2017 by Simon Richardson

Saturday’s (January 28) snowfall brought many of the higher cliffs into winter condition at the weekend. Ben Nevis was busy with many of the Early Season favorites such as Gargoyle Wall, The Clanger, Cutlass and Sidewinder seeing ascents. Notable ascents … Continue reading →

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Give and Take on Ben Nevis

Posted on January 28, 2017 by Simon Richardson

We are going through a very unhelpful weather cycle at the moment where snowfalls are followed by rapid thaws and the resulting dry conditions are locked by high pressure systems for days. We desperately need significant snowfall and a rapid … Continue reading →

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